📖 Meaning
Something or someone has completely disappeared without leaving the slightest trace or sign. It describes a total vanishing where no clue to whereabouts can be found.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom appears in the novel 《腐蚀》 (Corrosion) by the prominent modern Chinese writer Mao Dun (茅盾), in the diary entry dated November 13th. In the passage, the narrator tries hard to recall the bewildering dreams from the previous night, but finds that they have already vanished without a trace. Mao Dun was one of the most influential Chinese literary figures of the 20th century, and the phrase has since become a common expression for complete disappearance.
💡 Example Usage
那封旧信早已渺无影踪，再也找不到了。
That old letter has long vanished without a trace, never to be found again.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 渺无影踪
- Pinyin: miǎo wú yǐng zōng
- Literal Translation: vast, without, shadow, trace
- Category: Condition
- Characters: 4